2016 Festival Brochure - National Buffalo Wing Festival

2016 FESTIVAL BROCHURE
September 3rd - 4th • COCA-COLA FIELD • BUFFALO, NY
MESSAGE FROM THE FOUNDER
THE NATIONAL BUFFALO WING FESTIVAL
was inspired in 2001 by the movie “Osmosis Jones. In
the movie Bill Murray plays a ficticious character named
Frank DeTorre who is a big junk food and wing addict.
Frank’s goal is to attend the National Chicken Wing Festival in Buffalo, NY. Buffalo News columnist, Donn Esmonde then wrote in a column that he was bewildered
that Buffalo did not have such an event. That is when I
decided to take on the challenge for my Hometown as
well as my love for Buffalo Wings. In the
inaugural year of 2002, the plan was
set for an annual Labor Day Weekend
event. 40,000 people filled Coca-Cola
Field to consume over 20 tons
of wings.
AS WE ENTER INTO OUR
FOURTEENTH YEAR, the festival has
been recognized as one of the best
in the country by many publications, blogs and television
shows. In 2015 the festival
drew over 70,000 people.
Over the last 14 years
the festival has drawn
over 935,000 people and served over
5 million wings. The
festival which also supports local charities has
donated over $320,000
since its inception.
EVENT DETAILS
LOCATION
Coca-Cola Field in Downtown Buffalo, NY
- Home of the Buffalo Bison Baseball Team (AAA)
CONTACT
Drew Cerza (716) 479-6545
[email protected]
DATES
Labor Day Weekend
• Saturday, September 3rd - noon to 9pm
• Sunday, September 4th - noon to 7pm
CROWD ESTIMATE
70,000+ patrons over two days
BENEFITING CHARITIES
• Meals on Wheels of WNY
• Alzheimer’s Association of WNY
• Food Bank of WNY
• Food Shuttle of WNY (Feeding the Hungry)
THE FESTIVAL HAS ALSO BECOME A GREAT
TOURISM MAGNET for the Buffalo Region as wing
lovers from all over America and the world make the annual
pilgrimage to pay homage to the birthplace of the Buffalo
Wing. Last year we found through on-site surveys that attendees came from all 50 states and over 36 different countries. The festival has had a great local economic impact.
THE NATIONAL BUFFALO WING FESTIVAL has become the “Super Bowl” of the chicken wing industry for
restaurants, wing lovers and even competitive eaters.
The festival has been showcased by such national
media as the Food Network, - “All-American Festivals”, “Unwrapped”, “Throwdown with Bobby Flay,
and Emeril Lagasse Live, the Travel Channel - “Bar
Food Paradise”, “Taste of America”, and “Food
Wars”, NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s The View, Regis
and Kelly, the CBS Morning Show, the BBC, Fox and
Friends and even a PBS documentary.
ADVERTISING
• PRINT - Buffalo News, Night Life Magazine
• TV - WGRZ TV2 (NBC), WKBW TV7 (ABC), FOX TV
• RADIO - WGR550 Sports Radio, Kiss 98.5 Radio,
WBEN News Talk Radio, STAR 102 Radio
PAST MEDIA COVERAGE
Today Show, NBC Nightly News, CBS Morning Show, CBS
National News, Good Morning America, ABC National
News, CNN, MSNBC, Fox & Friends, Fox News, The View,
Regis & Kelly, Food Network, Travel Channel, Emeril Live
and many more. Hundreds of print articles have also
been written in newspapers and publications including
USA Today , New York Times, Saveur Magazine, and
Parade Magazine just to mention a few.
So “WING IT TO BUFFALO” and join us for
the fun and excitement at one of America’s greatest food festivals this Labor
Day Weekend - The National Buffalo
Wing Festival!
“Keep Wingin’ It”,
DREW CERZA
THE "WING KING"
DEMOGRAPHICS
* Survey conducted in 2012 by Ruth Diamond Research, Inc.
AVERAGE AGE: 39.3
% COLLEGE EDUCATED: 95%
MARRIED: 42%
AVERAGE HH INCOME: $82,583
56% MALE 44% FEMALE
OVERALL SATISFACTION
Overall satisfaction with the event averaged 4.4 on a scale
of 1-5, with 5 being excellent. The most prevalent multiple
verbatim reasons given behind high ratings included:
• “Wings” (11%)
• “Great event” (10%)
• “Fun” (6%)
• “Great food” (6%)
• “Great time” (6%)
• “Atmosphere” (5%)
THE NATIONAL
BUFFALO WING FESTIVAL
has become the “Super Bowl” of the chicken wing industry for restaurants, wing lovers and even
competitive eaters. The festival has been showcased by such national media as the Food Network, “All-American Festivals”, “Unwrapped”, “Throwdown with Bobby Flay, and Emeril Lagasse Live, the Travel
Channel - “Bar Food Paradise”, “Taste of America”, and “Food Wars”, NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s The View,
Regis and Kelly, the CBS Morning Show, the BBC, Fox and Friends and even a PBS documentary.
CNN Live
CNN Headline News
Emeril Live
Throwdown with Bobby Flay
NBC Today Show
Live with Regis and Kelly
NATIONAL TV TRACKING
NATIONAL NETWORK AFFILIATES
REPORT GENERATED:
Total Story Count: 724
Total Nielsen Audience: 24,598,692
Total Calculated Ad
Equivalency: $1,064,249
Total Calculated Publicity
Value: $3,193,287
NATIONAL NETWORKS
CNN Live
CNN Headline News
MSNBC
Fox News
The Weather Channel
Today Show
CBS Early Show
ABC Morning Show
NBC, CBS, and
ABC National News
BENEFITING CHARITIES
Each year, local charities benefit from the festival. Through the dozens of local charities
including Meals on Wheels, Alzheimer’s of WNY, Food Bank of WNY, Cystic Fibrosis, Americorps and the Food Bank of WNY. Since 2002 the festival has raised over
$325,000 for local charities.
In 2015 TV Eyes Media Tracking Service
reported that over 260 network affiliates
of NBC, CBS, ABC and FOX TV covered
stories on the National Chicken Wing
Festival. CNN and CNN Headline News
also ran continuos stories all weekend.
Cities included, all top 50 media markets. The TV viewership by reported at
10.57 million viewers and a media value
of over $573,000.
LOCAL TV TRACKING
LOCAL BUFFALO MEDIA
Total Story Count: 135
Total Nielsen Audience: 4,696,894
Total 30-Second Ad Equivalency: $49,540
Total Run Time: 3:00:00
Total Calculated Ad Equivalency: $86,706
Total Calculated Publicity Value: $260,118
LOCAL TELEVISION
Time Warner
ABC-TV7: AM Buffalo Show
NBC-TV2: Morning Show
CBS-TV4: Morning Show
This report was generated by Newstrax through a national media tracking service
for television. It contains copyrighted material and may be used for file and reference purposes only. Any reproduction, sale or distribution is prohibited. Portions
© 2007 Nielsen Media Research, Inc. Ratings data contained herein are the
copyrighted property of Nielsen Media Research, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
"THE GREAT CHICKEN WING HUNT"
Film producer Matt Reynolds formerly of Reuters News
Agency decided to film a documentary of his quest for
the perfect chicken wing. On August 18, 2008 Matt
started in New York City and worked his way across
Bill Murray
the state finishing at the National Buffalo Wing Festival
on Labor Day Weekend. The festival was a big part of
the film. The cast was incorporated into the various
contests and festival activities.
RESTAURANTS
Over thirty local and out of town restaurants from across
America will serve over 100 different style of wing sauces this
year. This past year the festival cooked approximately 500,000
wings with Trans Fat Free Oil provided by Bunge Oil.
2015 (Last Year’s)
Participating
Restaurants
Anchor Bar -- Buffalo, NY
Bocce Club Pizza -- Buffalo, NY
Bonehead’s Wing Bar -- West Warwick, RI
Booty’s Wings, Burgers & Beer -- Surprise, AZ
Buffalo Angel Wings -- Buffalo, NY
Danny’s Restaurants -- Buffalo Area Locations
Hard Rock Cafe -- Niagara Falls, NY
Duff’s Restaurant -- Buffalo, NY
Falletta’s -- East Amherst, NY
Seneca Buffalo Creek Casino -- Buffalo, NY
Wing Street -- Texas
The Healthy Zone -- Healthy alternatives
to wings at The Healthy Zone booth!)
Scallywags Grub & Spirits -- Derby, NY
La Nova -- Buffalo, NY
Legend Larry’s -- Sheboygan, WI
716 Food and Sport -- Buffalo, NY
Buffalo Wild Wings -- Tonawanda, NY
Brick House Tavern + Tap -- Amherst, NY
Pop N Bob’s -- Marilla, NY
Quaker Steak & Lube -- Multiple locations
throughout US & Canada
RuChDa -- Atlanta, GA
Sliders Grill & Bar -- Plainville, Berlin, Southington,
Wallingford, West Hartford, CT
L
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All participating restaurants enter the National
Wing Sauce-Off which consists of seven different categories. Three winners are crowned
in each category. Winners take home bragging
rights and are able to use their awards in local
and national advertising. Many list their award
winning sauces accompanied by the festival logo
on their menus. Categories include Traditional
Medium, Hot, X-Hot, Creative Sweet, Creative
Spicy, BBQ, Dry Rub and Creative BBQ.
The festival features live music all weekend long. Elvis
impersonator, Terry Buchwald entertained thousands
last year with his high energy performance. Local talent also includes Pirate Dreams as they perform a
“Jimmy Buffet Tribute”. International singing legend
Terry Sylvester formerly of the Hollies has appeared in
the past and performed many of hit #1 songs including
“Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress“, “The Air That I
Breathe“, and “He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother“. Rap
artist and competitive eater, Eric “Badlands” Booker
performs songs from his CDs, including “Hungry and
Focused”. The main stage emcee, Dennis George
A.K.A. the “Quiz Master”, dazzles the crowd with
his fun trivia shows all weekend long.
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Amateur cooks from all over the country
submit hundreds of entries each year to
participate in the Traditional and Creative
Wing Sauce Competition. Five participants compete in each category. Several
contestants over the years have actually
bottled their winning sauces and started
wing sauce businesses.
MISS BUFFALO WING PAGEANT
The Miss Buffalo Wing Contest is a display of world class pageantry.
In 2013 contestants answered trivia questions about Buffalo, read
excerpts from Macbeth and were asked to identify the heat intensity
of the sauce on a chicken wing.
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"BLUE CHEESE BOWL"
BOBBING FOR WINGS
This contest has been a festival and media favorite
for years. Thousands of fans cheer on three contestants bobbing for wings in a kiddy pool filled with blue
cheese dressing. After three minutes, the contestant
that pulls out the most wings without using their hands
is the winner. You may ask why do we get hundreds of
entries? It’s simple…all for the free t-shirt.
In 2006, Buffalo Wing Hall Of Flame was launched. The criteria for induction is based
on an individual’s or organization’s commitment to the Wing Industry by helping to
take chicken wings to the next level of popularity.
2006 - THE FIRST INDUCTEES WERE FRANK AND TERESSA BELLISSIMO,
founders of the Anchor Bar and creators of the original Buffalo Wing in 19 64.
2007 - SCOTT LOWERY AND JIM DISBROW, FOUNDERS OF BUFFALO WILD WINGS
were inducted for creating the largest chicken wing chain in the country at the time
(over 450 units).
2008 - FRANK’S REDHOT was a natural induction in 2008 as they were the main ingredient in the original Buffalo Wing recipe. Frank’s is now the most popular wing sauce
ingredient for restaurants across the country.
2009 - ADAM SCOTT AND MATT FRIEDMAN, FOUNDERS OF WING ZONE
started cooking wings in their college dorms in at the Florida University.Since then
they have over 100 units located predominately in the Southeast as well
as International.
2009 - DONN ESMONDE, COLUMNIST FOR THE BUFFALO NEWS
floated the idea of a National Wing Festival in a column back in 2001 after seeing the
movie Osmosis Jones. Drew Cerza read the article at took on Donn’s challenge.
2010 – BUFFALO BISON BASEBALL ORGANIZATION,
hosts of the National Buffalo Wing Festival at Coca-Cola Field since its inception in
2002. The Bison’s provide the infrastructure and support to make the festival
a success.
2010– ANTONIO SWAD, FOUNDER OF WINGSTOP RESTAURANTS. Antonio followed his
dreams to open a chicken wing focused restaurant and didn’t stop until he reached
100 stores. He then sold the concept to a group that have made Wingstop one of the
largest wing concept operators in the country with over 500 units.
2011 – BILL MURRAY, ACTOR IN OSMOSIS JONES, Bill Murray, Actor in Osmosis Jones
played the part of an average Joe addicted to fried food and other artery-clogging
fare, who was headed to Buffalo New York for… of all things… ..a chicken wing
festival. Well, as we all know, at that time there WAS NO CHICKEN WING FESTIVAL in
Buffalo, NY…at least not yet.
2011– DREW CERZA, WING KING AND NATIONAL BUFFALO WING FESTIVAL FOUNDER
Drew Cerza, Wing King and National Buffalo Wing Festival Founder - Cerza’s vision
has transformed Buffalo, NY into a destination for wing lovers the world over. They
come to participate in the “experience” that IS the National Buffalo Wing Festival. An
experience defined by the heart and soul of its creator, the Wing King himself, Buffalo’s own Drew Cerza.
2012– MAJOR LEAGUE EATING - GEORGE SHEA, SONYA THOMAS, ERIC “BADLANDS” BOOKER.
Major League Eating, is the sanctioning body for all professional eating contests
worldwide. George Shea is its founder, CEO and the Master of Ceremonies at MLE
events. Sonya “The Black Widow” Thomas continues to dominate her peers while
only weighing in at 105 pounds. Eric “Badlands” Booker is the people’s champ and is
an integral part of the festival.
2013– JON YOUNG, BUFFALO RESTAURANTEUR AND CREATOR OF THE “MAMBO SAUCE.”
John Young, former Buffalo restaurateur and chef is more than an asterisk in the rich
annals of the chicken wing. He is a pioneer. In the 1960s, Young – independent of the
1964 wing-creation of Teressa Bellissimo at the Anchor Bar – came up with a variation
of the now-renowned delicacy. Although Young claimed credit as the “true” creator
of the chicken wing phenomenon, his is not the version that the world subsequently
came to know and love. Had fate taken a different turn, however, we might today be
slathering our wings in his highly seasoned, tomato-based “Mambo Sauce” – and
Young would posthumously wear the crown of the chicken wing creation.
TENTATIVE 2016
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
SATURDAY • September 3rd • 12-9
Kids Zone - Play all day!
Amateur Creative Sauce-Off 1:00 PM
Amateur Traditional Sauce-off 1:30 PM
Heavenly Chillbillies Blues Band 2:00 PM
Dennis George – QuizMaster 2:30 PM
The Healthy Zone Recipe Challenge 3:00 PM
Bobbing for Wings 3:30 PM
Amateur Wing Eating Championship 4:00 PM
Dennis George – QuizMaster 4:45 PM
Restaurant Awards Ceremony 5:15 PM
Buffalo Buffet Bowl Eating Contest 6:00 PM
Heavenly Chilbillies Blues Band 7:00 PM
End of Day One 9:00 PM
NATIONAL BUFFALO WING FESTIVAL
www.BuffaloWing.com
Produced by Just Wing It Productions
4595 Greenbriar Road, Williamsville, NY 14221
Contact: Drew Cerza (716) 565-4141
[email protected]
SUNDAY • September 4th • 12-7 PM
Kids Zone - Play all day!
12:30 PM Baby Wing Competition
1:00 PM Dennis George – Quizmaster
1:30 PM
2:00 PM
2:30 PM
3:00 PM
4:00 PM
5:00 PM
6:00 PM
Miss Buffalo Wing Pageant
Bobbing for Wings
College Wing Eating Competition
Hot Buffalo Wing Eating Contest
Dennis George – Quiz Master
U.S. Chicken Wing Eating Championship
Heavenly Chilbillies
7:00 PM Closing Ceremonies